Eugene Freedman to Retire
By Staff -- Gifts & Decorative Accessories, 12/1/2004
Itasca, IL — Eugene Freedman, founding chairman of Enesco Group Inc., formally resigned from the board of directors, and will retire on March 1, 2005. Freedman, with Enesco since its inception in 1958, held a variety of positions before being named president and chief executive in the late 1960s. The company achieved worldwide sales of $500 million in 1996. Freedman left his mark on the gift industry with the development of the Precious Moments collection, the teardrop-eyed porcelain figurines based on the artwork of Sam Butcher, in 1978. He was named Enesco's founding chairman in 1998, and will assume the role of chairman emeritus after his retirement.
